Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Bend's New High School Location Announced

New schools for North and SE Bend

Following the passage of a $268.3 million bond measure this May, the Bend-La Pine School District is on track to build a new high school and a new elementary school in Bend—helping to address the continued growth and overcrowding at local schools.

According to a Nov. 15 press release, the Bend-La Pine Schools Director of Facilities, Mike Tiller, announced the location of the new elementary school at the school board meeting Nov. 14. The district has "entered into an agreement"with a property owner near OB Riley and Cooley Roads in north Bend for the elementary school, according to the release.

“The location will help to balance enrollment where overcrowding issues are the greatest,” Tiller is quoted as saying. The new elementary school, slated to be open by the fall of 2019, will have a design similar to Silver Rail Elementary, which opened in 2015.

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Bend-La Pine Schools

Officials from Bend-La Pine Schools say a proposed land swap will allow the district to site a new high school in SE Bend, at 15th and Knott.

Meanwhile, the district also announced the location of the new high school in Bend, also approved by voters through the school bond this year. The new high school will be located at the corner of SE 15th and Knott Road in southeast Bend. The district's high school location map on its website also includes plans for building a middle school adjacent to the new high school—though the recent bond did not include funds for construction of that middle school. The new high school is slated to open "as soon as the fall of 2021," according to the release. The district signed contracts with architects for the new high school and elementary school in August.

The bond measure is also covering the cost of modernizations at Pilot Butte Middle School, expansion of Marshall High School and secure lobby upgrades for several area schools.